Would you recommend Mamapedia to a friend?

Updated on
November 15, 2006,
R.S.
asks from Plymouth, WI
on
November 09, 2006

Can I Use a Cousins Name?

Some of you may have saw my request for baby names, and if so, thank you!! Today my daughter told us that if it is a girl she would like to name it Regan Rae. I have ALWAYS loved this name ( had a good friend in high school name Reagan). BUT my second counsin whom I see once a year, if that, just named her little girl Regan Elizabeth. Can I still use the name?
My daughter by the way, did not know my cousin named her little girl so she truly did not get it from there.
I would love to add it to the list of possibilties.

So What Happened?™

Thanks everyone!! I AM putting it on our list. I won't know the name we pick until we see the baby. I like the idea that my daughter has possibly picked the name for her little sister (if its a girl). It goes with the trend of the initals and has a special appeal because Cara named her. Thanks again!! :)

Featured Answers

C.L.
answers from Duluth
on
November 15, 2006

I have a friend Sara, who has a sister Kate, who have first cousins named Sarah & Katie. Same friend Sara has a first cousin Rachel and she named her daughter Rachel.
Use what ever name you like!
C.

My cousin and I both have the same name and we see each other fairly often. It has never been a big deal at all. When I was younger people used to refer to her as "big A." and me as "little A.". Not because she was "bigger" than me, but because she was older and I was younger. Anyway, it's just not a big deal when it comes to cousins.

I have a cousin who is about twice my age and lives far away. I almost never see her. She has a son who is just 7 years younger then I am. His name is Brian. I have always loved the name and thought maybe since we didn't see each other often it would be ok. So I named my son Bryan. My cousin was so excited and happy and actually very touched that I liked the name that she had chosen SO much that I would use it for my child too. I say go for it!

I would say no even though you should name your baby whatever you want to. I would say yes as long as it wouldn't bother you or offend the family.

I considered using the name of my second cousin who I see once a year. I even e-mailed them asking them if that would bother them even if I spelled it differently and I didn't get a response back. I didn't take the no response as a no answer but after thinking about it I thought it would be too weird and worried that the family would talk about it behind my back. It's like you would be a copy cat and with so many other names out there I would consider searching for something else unless, like I said, you are okay with it and any reactions to using Regan. Can you do Rae Regan? I'd use it as a middle name just not a first name.

My cousin and I both have the same name and we see each other fairly often. It has never been a big deal at all. When I was younger people used to refer to her as "big A." and me as "little A.". Not because she was "bigger" than me, but because she was older and I was younger. Anyway, it's just not a big deal when it comes to cousins.

Go for it! We named our son the same as a friend's son, and we see them several times a year. Big Ethan loves the bond he has with Little Ethan since they share a name. You've found a great name that you like, why not use it?

Dear R.,
I think you can safly use the name, especially because it's a second cousin whom you dont see very often. My daughter, Tabitha has a cousin spelled Tabatha. At the time, I was living out of state and hadnt spoken to my big brother in almost a year, not on pupose, just cuz of our busy lives. When I came back home for a visit with my two month old Tabitha, he, his wife and I all had a big laugh and realized that we needed to make a better effort to keep in touch! Cute, cause I'm looking at the photograph on the wall right now of my brother and I poseing, holding the two Tabitha's (Tabatha) who are a month apart. Luckily there has never been any confusion because we never call my daughter Tabitha anyway, her middle name is Sunshine so we actually have Tabatha and Sunny.
C. M.

I think you should name your baby whatever you want! There are FIVE L.'s in my family! I'm L. Kay, there is L. Elizabeth, L. Sue, L. Gordan, and L. Marie, and we always thought it was fun when we were little! And we are all cousins (first and second). Now that we are adults, we just go by the name L. and it still is not a big deal at all.

I don't see any problem with using that name. I have a cousin who named his daughter Grace (my daughter's name is Grace and she is almost a year older than his Grace)-Grace was our Grandmother's name (my middle name as well-who would have thought it would be so popular now!) Anyway, I wasn't offended by it. If you only see her maybe once a year-who cares? I only see my cousin's daughter once a year-it can be a little confusing at times-which Grace is being called, etc. but really not bad. If you love the name-go for it!

My ex had always wanted to name a son Logan (from X-Men), and his whole family knew that when he had a child, it would be Logan (as long as a boy!). His mom told everyone that they couldn't use the name, but his sister (pregnant with a boy at the time), decided she loved the name after hearing it talked about so much, so she used it. They decided it wasn't a big deal, he could still use it, because the last names would be different, and so would the middle names. My son is about a year younger than his sisters son, and was almost named Logan too, but while I was pregnant I decided the name didn't feel like it fit right so ended up changing to Connor instead. What was weird about that though, was we both had the name Logan chosen for a boy a few years before we even met eachother. Now we have a son together... not named Logan. But anyway... really I think if you like the name, use it. Your child has to have the name you give them for the rest of their life, so your better off going with the best choice, not 2nd best just because someone already used it. The middle name is different, and I am sure the last name is too, so who cares? Just use it! Good luck with your baby!!! :)

If you like the name and it doesn't bother you that someone else has it...by all means, go for it. There aren't many Copywrite laws on names. I would think it's more of an honor than anything. If you like it, don't hold back on giving your baby the best, just because someone else has the best too.

I would say she could definately use that name. The only time I would never copy a name is if it were my brother/sister's or inlaw's children's names. I wouldn't want to cousins at Christmas time with the same name but if you see them once a year who cares. Distant cousins and stuff doesn't matter. By the way I really like the name Regan.

I think if you like the name, then why not use it? It's not like anyone has the copyright to any name; they're all pretty much up for grabs. In my family, my mom's sister had a girl and named her Amy, but my parents had always liked that name, so when I was born about 8 years later, they named me A....just spelled it differently. It did get a little confusing over the years at family gatherings since we saw each other alot, so they ended up calling us Amy Beth and A. Lynn...but it worked out and no one was upset.